Potential Move to Colorado (Denver, Broomfield: real estate, to rent, buying)

[OSU23]

Hello,

I'm currently a third year in college at Ohio State and have always wanted to move to Colorado after school. I plan on working in commercial real estate. My ultimate dream is to find a place to live in Colorado that is close to the mountains, but also in a big enough city where it would be possible to be successful in commercial real estate. I've been skiing since I was very young and, being from Ohio, a 5 day trip once a year just doesn't cut it. I need to be in a place where I can load up the car every weekend or whenever powder hits and get to Vail. I know the towns east of Denver along I-70 are pretty small, I've stayed in Georgetown and Silverton when on some trips to climb 14ers, so I'm anticipating the best location for me to be near Denver itself. I go to Colorado at least once a year, but I'm just not familiar enough with the area to have a good sense of where I can find these things I'm looking for. I also may be asking for too much, but I wanted to see if anyone here has any suggestions or advice on where to start my search. Anything would be appreciated, thanks in advance!

[Mike from back east]

Golden is a good jumping off point for the mountains, but still within the Denver metro area. There should be enough commercial R.E. on the west side of the metro area to keep you busy. Weekend traffic on I-70 is always a grind, especially in ski season. Usually we tell people to get the job first, then find a place near work to live, and to rent a year before buying.

[OSU23]

Yeah I'm definitely looking to land a job first but I'm pretty dead-set on Colorado and should have some okay connections there. Thanks for the advice, I'll check out Golden! Sounds like it's what I'm looking for, close to the mountains but still within the Denver area. I appreciate it!

[Mike from back east]

Originally Posted by OSU23

Yeah I'm definitely looking to land a job first but I'm pretty dead-set on Colorado and should have some okay connections there. Thanks for the advice, I'll check out Golden! Sounds like it's what I'm looking for, close to the mountains but still within the Denver area. I appreciate it!

Good brewpubs there too, not to mention the Coors tour and tasting room.

[NW Crow]

If hitting Vail a lot is important to you, you could also try to find a niche in the small market area around Edwards and Eagle and drive a shorter distance with probably less traffic. There is some new development there. Or try Vail itself.

Golden is a nice place and could work out for you but its population growth the last decade was 40% less the Denver metro as a whole. There is some new stuff coming in and upgrading going on but available land is pretty limited I believe. By contrast Castle Rock's population increase was 7 times the metro average and they will probably get more of their own commercial sector. Broomfield is another recent hotspot that might have more commercial real estate jobs and more economic upside.

I wouldn't recommend the towns east of Denver along I-70 given your interest in commercial real estate.

Best bet would be to get an entry job in the metro area, get good experience and references, then move out further if it makes sense to you later all things considered and you find that right niche.